So Many

I wrote a post the other day about my overwhelming sadness that my son was going to go to a combat zone for a year. I couldn't bear the thought of him being away from his family for so long and I couldn't bear that he was going to a dangerous place.

Beth tweeted about it and wrote about it and mentioned my post in her post.

Since then, there have been so many comments, so many comforting words, and so many good wishes. From so many people in the same boat or even worse boats and from so many people that just appreciate what he does and feel empathy for the impact it has on him and his family.

Don't get me wrong. I am still indescribably sad to have him over there but my heart is comforted by the words of so many.

So many people offered virtual "hugs" and I felt like I could feel them. They offered prayers and those prayers became my prayers. And they offered love and my heart was filled with love. They reminded me of how proud I can be of my son and his values. And expressed gratitude for what he and so many other men do for us and our country. And, most of all, one after another, let me know that they were thinking warm and loving thoughts of our family right now. And I felt them all.

After a very long trip, he arrived there about five hours ago and as Amy T said in her comment, "Big hugs and allow yourself to be sad at first, than throw all that sadness out the window and focus all your energy on care packages and letters and love for your soldier! Thank you to your son for defending our freedoms" And I have to say that Amy T nailed it. She expressed everything I knew but forgot to think about and more.

But that doesn't take away from the reminders of faith and prayerful good wishes of everybody else.

I doubt that very few could know what an impact your comments had - not just on me but on our entire family.

So thank you to everyone that thought of us or commented or said a prayer. But I have bad news. I think we're going to have to do this again soon. When, over the phone, I cried on the shoulder of second born Army son (firstborn's identical twin), and told him that he better not be going anywhere, he reluctantly told me that he would be leaving for Afghanistan this summer or just before Christmas.

I hope you'll all hover nearby because I (and my entire family) am going to need you sorely when there are two of them deployed. Then I'll really have something to cry about.

It reminds me of my dad when I was little. He'd think my crying over some small thing was uncalled for and would often say, "stop crying or I'll give you something to cry about".

When the day comes that they're both deployed, I'll go back over the comments that you've left on that post and I'll think about the wise, supportive, comforting words of such a multitude of beautiful people. And I'll be comforted.

And I'll thank you all from the bottom of my heart once again.